Um, I thought everyone was aware of the fact that Obama supports “Israel’s right to defend itself”

This is just another one of “ole bullshits” LEGACIES….Israel saw the U.S. invade Iraq….So Israel figures[since they are “favorites” of bu$h]-They can do the same….and bomb/murder/maim/invade Gaza…I AM amazed at “condom-sleaza”.....What part of “YOU ARE NO LONGER IN CHARGE” does SHE NOT UNDERSTAND??

Maybe-now-we can start to rebuild OUR OWN COUNTRY and ECONOMY….

“No instigation, no response from Israel.”

Israel has a long history of deliberately using violence and other provocative measures to trigger reactions in order to create a pretext for military action, and to portray its opponents as the aggressors and Israel as the victim.

Have you not heard the Lavon Affair (aka Suzann aka Suzanna Project)?

Maybe you need to read the book, “Defending the Holy Land”, by respected Israeli military historian Zeev Maoz. Maoz documents how Israel used the policy of “strategic escalation” in 1955-1956, when it launched deadly raids on Egyptian army positions to provoke Egypt’s President Nasser into violent reprisals preceding its ill-fated invasion of Egypt.

In 1981-1982, Israel launched violent raids on Lebanon in order to provoke Palestinian escalation preceding the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.

Between 2001-2004, Sharon repeatedly ordered assassinations of high-level Palestinian militants during declared ceasefires, provoking violent attacks that enabled Israel’s virtual reoccupation of the West Bank.

“Just maybe Hamas will be more interested in nation-building instead of trying to do away with Israel.”

Hamas might be interested, but Israel isn’t.  Israel mos certainly want to do away with the Gazans, once they have taken everything they want to take.

BTW.  Shimon Peres just admitted that Israel does indeed have a policy of targeting civilians.  Speaking to an AIPAC mission in Israel on Wednesday, he stated that “Israel’s aim [in attacking Gaza] was to provide a strong blow to the people of Gaza so that they would lose their appetite for shooting at Israel.” 

In other words, the agenda was to hurt the population so that they would not fight back.

Israel was planning this war before the ceasefire and long before it broke the ceasefire.

Ed Harges quotes HuggPo:

“..So, yes, you do not bomb just because the other side might acquire one percent of the weapons you have. Otherwise, you will always be bombing, because it is “...logical for the other side to try to acquire those weapons for what they perceive to be self-defense….”

“...If you’re threshold for starting violence is that the other side is thinking about it (close to the rationale we used in Iraq), then you will always be starting wars. Self-defense, my ass. Those are called first strikes. If you think it’s necessary, fine, but don’t pretend that you didn’t start the hostilities..”

Could someone send Pelosi and Reid copies of this? Seriously…Afghanistan , too. (The “country of Afghanistan” never “attacked” the uS)

No instigation, no response from Israel.
Just maybe Hamas will be more interested in nation-building instead of trying to do away with Israel.

The Gazans believe they need weapons, even during a ceasefire, to maintain deterence.  Otherwise, Israel can freely engage in an assassination here, bomb an apartment building, school, or hospital there, etc.

And, of course, that is what Israel wants.  It wants to be able to freely attack Gaza when it chooses, while maintaining an economic blockade by land, sea, and air.

I just have to quote a chunk from a great article over at the Huff Post.

The writer, Cenk Uygur, says he keeps hearing pro-Israel people asking, “Well, what was Israel supposed to do??”

So Uygur provides a list of things that Israel was supposed to do, instead of what it is doing now in Gaza.

Uygur’s very first point is so good, I’m going to quote the whole thing:

1.  Not break the cease-fire in the first place.

If you’re threshold for starting violence is that the other side is thinking about it (close to the rationale we used in Iraq), then you will always be starting wars. Self-defense, my ass. Those are called first strikes. If you think it’s necessary, fine, but don’t pretend that you didn’t start the hostilities.

The rest of this great piece is here:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/what-was-israel-supposed_b_155688.html

As always, we are witnessing Israel’s idea of negotiation.  Israel gives up nothing, while the Palestinians have a right to be subjucated and opressed.

We want to keep you under occupation and blockade, but let’s have a ceasefire.

Such a deal!

Israel’s “ceasefire” will presumably mean that it goes right back to its standing blockade of Gaza. Well, a blockade is an act of war. And blockading a population as desperately in need as this one is not only an act of war but a war crime. It’s also just plain intolerable for the people enduring it.

And of course Israel will go back to its continual house demolitions, orchard bulldozings, assassinations, beach shellings, and other myriad and constant aggressions that are scarcely ever mentioned in the US’s Zionist-controlled press.

Since when do we call something a “ceasefire” between two parties in which one party is engaging in continual warfare and war crimes on a massive scale?

Livni’s “ceasefire” is just more Israeli bullsh*t.

If Israel “did not want to occupy Gaza”, then, why, now that they have agreed to a ceasefire, are they going to remain there?

We know why…

By Howard, January 17 at 2:38 am #

“to get Hamas to stop the incessant dangerous shelling into Israel”. 

Since when did the Palestinians get an artillery piece?  If they had and used one against Israel they probably would be nuked.

Israel wouldn’t act as cavilier in its collateral damage if it was fighting a better armed populace.

Howard,

The blockade by Israel invluded everytthing, from basic food and fuel to medicsal supplies.  It was NOT an attempt to stop Hamas sending rockets, but to punich gaa for putting Hamas into power inteh first place.  In 2003, Hamas undertook an unilateral ceasfire for the whole of the summer, and Israel still kinapped and killed 300 Hamas members throughout the duration.

In any case, Israel agreed to lieft the blockade as part of the June agreement, and then reneged on that agreement.

It’s safe to assume that what Isreal tell us rarely bears any connection to what is reality.  Just look at the way they have banned jouralists from entering Gaza.

Isrel were lying then and they are lying now.

The reason Hamas cannot govern is because ISreal has done all it can to undermine it and wreak cahos and destructino on Gaza.  Under such condition, not group could govern.

It cannot build a nation because Israel does not want to see that happen.

Yes, eileen, we should abolish the term “terrorist”, but what would politicians do without the phrase “war on terror”?

I agree, we should be done with that term, too. It becomes an excuse to do almost anything..

(exact copy) ignore

Did Zohan run out of ammo?

Yes, eileen, we should abolish the term “terrorist”, but what would politicians do without the phrase “war on terror”?

I agree, we should be done with that term, too. It becomes an excuse to do almost anything..

Israel announces these fake ceasefires periodically so their zionist media, including the Progressive like the NYTimes and Truthdig, can repeat them while Israel continues the war and occupation.

The danger is that the US will help seal the tunnels into Egypt, cutting off food and ammunition.  This would greatly hinder Hamas from defending the Palestinians and would allow the Israelis complete freedom to tighten their starvation blockade, now with Bush-Obama support.

The danger is putting in Peacekeepers of US allies or puppets that close the tunnels while Israel rounds up and murders Palestinians while occuping Gaza.  If the US enters this war with Peacekeepers, the Bushites will leave Obama with three wars to continue.  And he cannot continue these wars against Muslims without continuing to torture militants defending the occupied populations.

Ed Harges. The U.S. is powerful enough—or believes itself to be—to overlook what it considers short-term hostility to its foreign policy. Thus, just because public opinion runs against it is no reason for it to abandon long-term aims. The just announced conference in Cairo, what with Brown sending the British fleet to help control Hamas and Gaza is just another piece of evidence in NATOs aim to make further inroads into Asia.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

Israel Should Stop the War and Let US Enjoy the Inauguration;

Cease fire Mooted;
55 Palestinians Killed Friday, including Little Girls

“There are rumors that the Israeli government may declare a unilateral cease fire Saturday. They had better. Because if they ruin the Obama inauguration by splashing the bloody bodies of dead Palestinian children all over the press during the next few days, no Americans, even the most pro-Israeli, are going to forgive them. The war has left 1,140 Palestinians dead, over 300 children, and over 5,000 wounded including many women and children, as well as 13 Israelis (4 of them civilians killed by rocket fire). We pay for these wars, we provide the fighter jets, bombs, and tanks. And we don’t want our money used for this sanguinary purpose in the first place; we have enough to be guilty about all on our own. And we especially don’t want to hear a peep from over there while we swear in our first African-American president.”

http://www.juancole.com/

In song: LULLABY FOR A CHILD IN WAR

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6086636
(free download and lyrics)

re: By Eso, January 17 at 3:10 am:

Eso: Israel is no help at all to the US in “seizing control of the underbelly of Asia”.

The essence of US realpolitik in resource-rich parts of the world is to cultivate friendly relations with governments - admittedly sometimes unsavory governments - in order to secure access to commodities such as oil. The US relationship with Israel makes it more difficult for accommodating governments in thew Mideast to do business with the US, because of the mass hostility toward the US generated by our identification with Israel. This creates instability and insecurity which are exactly the opposed to material interests of the United States.

Israel is no help at all to the US. Israel is purely a problem with no objective value whatsoever to the US.

Smiling about 400 murdered children.  This is a level of depravity previously unknown in this country.

By eileen fleming, January 16 at 9:09 pm #

“What we are doing is expressing the right of Israel to defend itself from terror, from this agenda of hatred being represented by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and by Iran in the region,”-Livni

ICAHD:

“Terrorist” is a problematic term. States always use it to delegitimize and demonize non-state actors who resist their oppressive policies, as apartheid South Africa did, for example, with the ANC

eileen I agree completely with your comment

If Israel is using the U.S. as a tool for its purposes, let us not forget that the U.S. and Europe are using Israel for their purposes: to seize the underbelly of Asia under their control. When the war on Gaza is seen in this perspective, it makes one understand why Cruton Rice is so agreeable that Tzibak Livni mixes her tzibaks with crutons and both smile so sweetly.

The ONLY reason why Isreal is considering a cease fire now is that it now knows the Gaza mess has backfired on them and continuing it is a losing game that will only make things worst for them (and the US). IMO I think the damage is already done despite the PR BS attempts done by isreali (and the US) to fix it.

Shingos,
Blockade by Israel,of just some items and services partially was a non-violent attempt to get Hamas to stop the incessant dangerous shelling into Israel. It was announced as such and that’s what is for, as Hamas knew/knows quite well.  Despite rhetoric to the contrary.

Hamas cannot govern and has misled it’s people terribly downward. Downward, downward. It does not want to build a nation, but is obsessed with a declared war to destroy Israel and its people.

One last notice - right under your posting here, is an advertisment banner with an Israeli flag sponsored by come2israel - seriously, that seems fitting…

Al-Jazeera English has proven itself with this atrocious Israeli episode, and Israeli b.s.propaganda. It is incredible how we not only have to read in the last days:

“Thus Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s arrogant utterance that he personally caused the United States to reverse its position on the U.N. Security Council resolution last week demanding a Gaza cease-fire. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had helped organize support for that resolution and had committed the United States to vote in its favor.”

We now see Rice again, as Israel can get the Bush government to do like all dictators did before, puff themselves up in seriousness with some invented special ceremonial contract or exchange, that is absolutly without meaning or ability to enact. U.S. and Israel narcissism is so perverse that they imagine if they sign a contract, that stands for the rest of the world. They can ignore the U.N. (that’s the plan of course, dismantle the U.N.) and sign contracts with themselves AS the world.

Now what is it that Hillary Clinton is supposed to improve here? Or the Congress that voted to support?

Al-Jazeera English American correspondent did a great job - and without any rhetoric, still partisan enough - explaining how this whole act is essentially meaningless to show Livni in pictures looking suddenly official, with Rice etc. and to give Israel a way out.

The best was Livni’s wish for “Cheney-speak” to address a reporter who simply suggested - as most do - if this wasn’t just p.r. for her campaign. It’s such a contrast to Obama’s introduction of another language.

The Israeli-neo-con link is really a particular language of its own.

“All blood shedding is Hama’s fault. with ‘orders’ from Iran, who is the actual behind the scenes boss. Bet the public in gaza will now perhaps tire of being played patsy and get onto nation-building instead of trying to destroy Israel.”

Rubbish as usual.  Iran is not pulling strings here, mush as Israel want to start a war with them.  They even asked Bush for his permission to attack Iran, and he said no. 

I nany case, there will never be nation building in Gaza so long as Israel remains determined to keep it destitute, blockading it, bombing it, and denying it basic services.

“If there was no instigation for the last 6 months by Hamas there would have been no response from Israel. also Hamass refused to continue the cease fire 3 weeks ago.  can’t forget that item.”

Also rubbish.  Israel’s blockade has been in palce for 18 months and before that, Israel ivaded Gaza and collectively puniched the Palestinains for voting for Hamas.

In any case. the instigation was perpetrated by Israel, by refusing to lift the blockade from day 1, and thus violatinbg the ceasefire.

Oh how gracious of Israel.

What a ridiculous and revolting excuse for a “light unto the nations”. How utterly bizarre that our own country has fed its blood and treasure this insatiable monster.

Truly the “Holy Land” is nothing but a little shop of horrors, with the greedy man-eating monster Israel at its heart.

“What we are doing is expressing the right of Israel to defend itself from terror, from this agenda of hatred being represented by Hamas in the Gaza Strip and by Iran in the region,”-Livni

ICAHD:

“Terrorist” is a problematic term. States always use it to delegitimize and demonize non-state actors who resist their oppressive policies, as apartheid South Africa did, for example, with the ANC…

In the eight years since the second Intifada broke out (September 2000), almost 500 Israeli civilians have been killed by Palestinians while almost 5000 Palestinians have died at the hands of Israelis. All attacks on civilians are unacceptable, no matter how just the cause. Yet it is only the Palestinians to whom the term “terrorist” is applied. 

Presenting Hamas as merely a “terrorist organization” removes the political element from their struggle and presents them as a criminal organization.

This not only distorts reality in a fundamental way but, by preventing negotiations, it ensures the perpetuation of mutual suffering.

Hamas has its military wing – though nothing compared to the Israeli army – but it is essentially a grassroots religious-political movement that democratically won the Palestinian elections in 2006 and earned the right to establish a government – which was denied it by Israel, the US…and the Fatah part of the Palestinian Authority.

It does deny Israel’s legitimacy, as any colonized people would, and there is no reason why it should accept the loss of 78% (or more) of its historic homeland. But Hamas has agreed, as a signatory to the “Prisoners’ Document” and in repeated public pronouncements, to respect the outcome of negotiations of other Palestinian parties (like Fatah) with Israel, if they result in a complete withdrawal from the Occupied Territories.

So despite its militant and scary image, despite the fact that it will not legitimize what it considers another people’s colonization of its homeland, Hamas does accept, as a practical political matter, a two-state solution. Given the fact that negotiations with Israel since the Madrid Conference of 1991 have yielded nothing – indeed, Israel’s massive settlement enterprise has perhaps eliminated the possibility of a viable Palestinian state alongside Israel – Hamas’s resort to armed resistance is understandable.

All attacks on civilians are prohibited in international law. In this regard both Hamas and Israel engage in terrorism, with the later taking by far the greatest of civilian dead, injured and traumatized. 

To pursue offensive policies of prolonged occupation as well as sanctions, boycotts and closures which rob another people of its rights, aspirations and very livelihood, and to then refuse to truly engage with that people’s elected leaders (a policy preceding Hamas’s rise to power), is what puts your own people at risk.

To expect your citizens to live in security while a million and a half subjugated people just a few kilometers away live in misery is both unrealistic and presumptive. Israel will only be able to defend its citizens – which is indeed its duty – if it addresses the causes of their insecurity, which is a 41 year-old occupation which the oppressed will resist, by “legitimate” means or not.

e http://www.wearewideawake.org

All blood shedding is Hama’s fault. with ‘orders’ from Iran, who is the actual behind the scenes boss. Bet the public in gaza will now perhaps tire of being played patsy and get onto nation-building instead of trying to destroy Israel.

If there was no instigation for the last 6 months by Hamas there would have been no response from Israel. also Hamass refused to continue the cease fire 3 weeks ago.  can’t forget that item.

Two political whores good at nothing but at sucking the penises of their evil bosses and facilitating, justifying and cheering the slaughter of children, women and men!

Now after all the blood-shedding, they have the audacity of posing as peacemakers!

It would have been better for humanity that the one would have remained an eternal slave to the Pharaohs of Egypt, and the other would have remained as the eternal slave of the white Europeans of America!

This is really a slap in the face to the world and especially to the citizens of america. Two queen bitches congradulating each other on a job well done to promote w’s apparent departure from office by acting out a grand play of diplomacy in the nick of time. All of them deserve the Hague and serious time if not execution. Should have seen this coming long time ago and I still wonder what it really means.